Shifting Perspective
by Macx
Summary: Operation Pitfall was a success. There had been loss, but there had also been a survivor. Chuck Hansen had been found badly injured, but alive. His recovery opens Raleigh's eyes to something he hadn't known about the other pilot, that only a select few actually do. He finds himself very much drawn to the other man... even in the shape he is in. PacRimAU canon divergence warning!


x X XX xx X XX xxx x X XX xx X XX x X XX xx X XX xxx x X Xx X XX xx X XX xxx x X XX xx X XX x X XX xx X XX xxx x X Xx X XX xx X XX xxx x X XX xx X XX x X XX xx X XX xxx x X X  
There should be a warning that reads: "author needs her head examined!" This fic was inspired by a cute little fic based on a Pacific Rim Kinkmeme prompt and a picture. Since neither link can be posted on FFNet, you just have to read the fic to understand... Note to self: I cannot write drabbles or ficlets. Must be a flaw. I tried. I really did.  
And this happened. It... ran away from me.  
*Hangs head* Thank you, Ally, for encouraging me indirectly to write this (I complained that there was only this one fic out there...) and Fangirl1138 for being brave enough to beta read. :)

x X XX xx X XX xxx x X XX xx X XX x X XX xx X XX xxx x X Xx X XX xx X XX xxx x X XX xx X XX x X XX xx X XX xxx x X Xx X XX xx X XX xxx x X XX xx X XX x X XX xx X XX xxx x X X

Raleigh Becket couldn't say he was totally shocked.

Well, yes, he was shocked.

Anyone would be.

Not because of what he was seeing; that was… weird but okay. No, it was because he wouldn't have thought that Chuck Hansen… Never in his wildest dreams!

And even if…

His brain stalled.

Even if he had known, he wouldn't have suspected… that!

Raleigh suspected he was also probably traumatized from his close call in the Anteverse, from barely making it back alive, and he was also under the influence of pain-killers. Among other things. Spending forty-eight hours under observation, going through decontamination and about a million blood tests and scans, had been bad enough already. Coupled with the brain damage – psychological, the neurologists claimed - he had received after the mid-Drift-separation from Yancy, he might just be seeing things.

Hallucinations.

Very weird hallucinations.

Then again, maybe not.

Judging by the warning expression in Herc's eyes, he truly was seeing this.

Damn.

He saw Herc Hansen, acting Marshall of the Hong Kong Shatterdome, cradle a koala against his shoulder. A stout little, gray-brown – touch of ginger to the brown - koala, swathed in bandages, burned fur sticking out under the white gauze, the one uncovered eye closed, its face pressed against Herc's dark gray t-shirt.

Raleigh blinked.

The image stayed.

An image that involved round, fluffy ears and a large, spoon-shaped nose.

A very suicidal part of him wanted to say the whole thing looked adorable. Very, very adorable. The part that was clearly into survival told him that nothing about this being adorable would leave his lips.

His hindbrain clamored for attention, pointing out that this couldn't actually be, that everything was possible, but not that! Raleigh knew… he _knew_ who the koala had to be. There was no other explanation, even though it was insane.

He couldn't be… now could he? Then again, why not? Just because he had never heard a single peep about it?

The news that an escape pod from Striker Eureka had been found had resulted in cautious hope. When the rescue team had announced a surviving pilot, Herc had nearly cried. When the pilot in question had been brought in, bleeding, hanging on to life with a determination that was Chuck Hansen, Herc hadn't been swayed from his son's side for a moment.

Raleigh had been simply relieved, even if the injury list had been long and rather terrifying. Chuck had been in surgery for ten hours, then had spent the next twenty-four under surveillance in ICU. Herc had never been far. Even with his Marshall duties, he had been in Medical, turning his son's room into his office.

No one else had been allowed in, aside from family.

Raleigh had tried. He had been politely told to wait until they had moved Chuck to a regular room.

Now he knew why.

Had he been a koala in ICU already? Or had he changed just before the transfer?

"He's a Shifter?" he finally blurted.

Herc's expression was suddenly sharper, the lines of his body tense, and Raleigh almost took a step back. The blue eyes were cold and calculating, but the way he held the injured koala spoke of nothing but protective instinct.

Chuck Hansen was a Shifter, a human being able to change his shape into that of an animal.

_A koala_, Raleigh's brain screamed at him. _A koala! Would you have thought of him as a koala? No! A dingo, maybe, if it had to be an Australian animal. Or a wolverine. But not a koala!_

"What's it to you?" Herc growled.

And it was a growl.

A warning.

And so many more things.

For a wild moment Raleigh wondered if Herc was a Shifter, too. If he was, he definitely wouldn't be a koala. The Marshall would be the throat-ripping kind of Shifter form for sure. In any case, even as a human being, Herc was a force to be reckoned with and he would kick Raleigh's ass from here to Anchorage.

"I… didn't know," he stammered.

Oh, smooth, Becket. Very smooth. He could almost hear his brother laughing at him.

"Few do. I repeat my question: what's it to you, Becket?"

Raleigh felt his mouth go dry as his hairs rose in terror and every instinct in his body told him to tread very, very carefully. Herc wasn't just the Marshall of the Shatterdome. Or a highly decorated Air Force soldier. Or a seasoned Jaeger pilot. He was a father and Chuck had nearly died.

_Might still die_, a nasty voice whispered in Raleigh's head.

He didn't really care what Chuck was. He could be a Shifter or not, a koala or something else. It had just been a surprise and a shock, coupled by relief that Chuck had survived and his abilities would help him heal.

"I'm just glad he made it out alive, sir," he finally said.

Herc's expression didn't waver. Actually, his brows drew down more. He still cradled the koala, which kept on sleeping, probably under heavy medication.

Raleigh couldn't take his eyes off the furry little marsupial. There were so many injured places, so much burned and covered by bandages, he wondered if Chuck had any intact areas left. Mako had told him that the other Jaeger pilot was in a bad way, that they had to bring him back twice, that there had been the danger of contamination in the beginning, but Chuck was alive.

Not in ICU. Not connected to any machines.

No, he was with Herc, his father, and he was a koala Shifter. Chuck had managed to heal enough to be thrust into Herc's care.

_How do you intubate a koala?_ a giddy part of his mind wanted to know. _Did he change because they asked him to? Did they trigger the change?_

"Is he okay?" he heard himself ask a very stupid question.

Herc leaned back in his chair, the tension ebbing a small degree. The hand not cupping the small marsupial was running tenderly over the seemingly soft fur where no bandages hindered him.

"As a human he wouldn't be. As a Shifter he's stable enough not to be under constant care." His eyes drilled into Raleigh's. "Not many know," he repeated slowly, voice holding a dangerous edge.

Raleigh stiffened, tensing even more. Yeah, Herc could be a Shifter or not, but he was giving off vibes that had the very human Raleigh Becket want to make a run for it.

"I'm not going to tell anyone."

Herc's eyes seemed to penetrate into his very soul. This was a very protective parent, someone who would fight for his son, who would keep him safe against everyone and everything right now, and who knew ten ways to kill Raleigh in his sleep.

Raleigh had seen Herc's protectiveness several times before Operation Pitfall and it had come out full force when his son had been found alive, though seriously injured. Now, with a Shifter in form of a defenseless koala clinging to him, Herc's guard was up even more.

He finally nodded.

Raleigh found his eyes still drawn to the small form, part of him longing to touch him, but he fought down that notion. He knew now; it was an honor. He wasn't allowed to touch.

Maybe one day.

He really wanted to. Because this was Chuck. Because he wanted to know, to feel, to be allowed this intimacy.

"Do you have experience with Shifters?" Hansen asked, drawing him out of his thoughts. His free hand gently petted the sleeping Shifter.

"Indirectly. Yancy dated a Shifter once."

"None in your family?"

"None I know."

Maybe there were Shifters. Maybe had had a great-great-grandparent or a distant, several times removed cousin. Raleigh didn't know. It wasn't like Shifters were registered or anything. They were just… there. A fluke of nature, accepted, end of story. Not everyone who had the ability came out bragging. Not everyone Shifted on a daily basis. Some went through their whole lives with only immediate family and select few friends knowing about them.

Like Chuck.

"But you know what it means." It was a statement, a fact, not even a question.

"Yeah. In a way."

What you learned in school and growing up. What he had been told by Yancy's girlfriend.

"Good."

And that was that.

That was how Raleigh found himself as part of the select few people who knew about Chuck's abilities.

Like Mako.

Like Newton and Hermann.

And Tendo.

Medical, of course, knew, too. They had to. Shifters had a slightly off metabolism, especially in their alternate form. Doctors had to compensate for that. Seeing how out of it Chuck was, how thickly bandaged, he was under heavy meds.

XX xx

Raleigh walked out of Herc's quarters, stunned, mind reeling.

Part of him wanted to celebrate Chuck's survival and the fact that he had a more than good chance to heal completely. Another was fretting over the fact that he really wanted to run his fingers through the gray-brown fur – with its ginger touches- reassure the Shifter that nothing would happen to him, that he was okay.

That Raleigh wouldn't let anything hurt him.

Damn!

That were the thoughts that would get fingers bitten off and asses kicked.

He went into his quarters and fell onto his bed, staring at the ceiling.

"Shit," he whispered.

x X XX xx X XX xxx x X XX xx X XX x X XX xx X XX xxx x X Xx X XX xx X XX xxx x X XX xx X XX x X XX xx X XX xxx x X Xx X XX xx X XX xxx x X XX xx X XX x X XX xx X XX xxx x X X

"He never Shifts," Tendo told him over a cup of coffee – with a little extra, as the LOCCENT officer had said with a smile.

The little extra was strong and the quantity probably not so little, Raleigh mused. He had found Tendo while walking aimlessly through the Shatterdome, smiling at those congratulating him on blowing up the Anteverse. Raleigh didn't feel like celebrating, though he gamely shook hands and let people tell him what a hero he was.

He didn't feel like a hero either.

Tendo had hustled him into a more secluded area and Raleigh had finally breathed a sigh of relief. Choi had given him the 'so you your fellow Ranger is a Shifter' speech.

"At least not willingly," he added now, smiling. "He's a koala. Not much use for that, unless you want to curl up in a small space to sleep." He grinned. "Which he did once or twice after his first few Drops. Drove Herc insane."

"I can imagine," Raleigh murmured.

"First time he did it in almost three years now," Choi went on. "I guess it all became too much and he did it to protect himself. And to heal. I'm always fascinated that it never happens in a Jaeger. Did you know Bruce Gage is one?"

Raleigh blinked at the change of topic. Bruce, together with his twin Trevin, had been Romeo Blue's pilot. After Romeo's destruction, both men had been grounded since no new Jaeger had been ready for them and Romeo had never been repaired. Too expensive.

"Not Trevin, just Bruce. Shows you how weird this ability is." Tendo shrugged. "Maybe Trevin has the gene, but it never activated. Bruce spent the first three days after Romeo's defeat as a dog."

"Oh."

"Like I said, it helps cope with stress. Seeing what happened to the kid, he has every right to be his Shifter self."

A fuzzy, cute koala, clinging to his father, sleeping most of the time. Instinct kept him from letting go and falling off. It had been such a strange sight, one instilling warm, protective feelings in Raleigh, too.

Not something he experienced when looking at Chuck as a human being. Actually, the first time they had come head to head not long after meeting each other, Raleigh had hit him. It had been the failed Drift with Mako, when she had slipped out of alignment, chasing the rabbit. Chuck had mouthed off, insulted them both, but mostly Mako, and the chivalrous side of Raleigh Becket had charged and taken over his more logical brain. Something inside him had triggered at Chuck's words, overriding everything, and he had lashed out.

The result had been a furious, betrayed looking Chuck, bruised and bleeding, and a confused, chagrined Raleigh.

Their relationship had started out on the completely wrong foot and had only gone downhill from there.

Until Operation Pitfall.

Until Chuck had made it back, barely alive, and Raleigh had finally had some time to analyze his emotions. He was prone to introspective moments now and then. Ever since he had disappeared into obscurity, dealing with the damage done to his psyche by Yancy's death. He had had a lot of time to contemplate life and everything else while building the Wall.

This time it didn't take five years.

This time it had taken the near-death experience in the Anteverse and the miracle of Chuck's survival.

Raleigh emptied his coffee and Tendo refilled the cup, this time only with the 'little extra'. It burned, but it was a good burn.

He needed this. Especially since his emotions were currently all over the place.

"You like him, hm?"

Raleigh blinked. "What?"

"Chuck. You like him. All that posturing and glaring and showing off, and you like him."

He frowned.

"Oh, stop it, Becket. I've known you since you joined the program," Choi snorted. "You were a hothead like Chuck. Yancy was the more cool-headed of the two of you, had to keep you in line. You weren't so much different from Chuck now. You like him and you're as bad at feelings as he is. Tell the boy, okay? He likes you back and he won't say no."

"He's a koala, Tendo."

"Not all the time." Tendo raised his eyebrows. "And the moment his animal hindbrain hands over control to his human side, he will understand more. Don't think he won't remember the rest, though. Shifters do. They aren't animal or human, they are both. So man up and tell him you got feelings."

Raleigh groaned and swallowed the rest of the burning liquid. He felt a slight buzz, but at least it dulled the sense of terror and anxiety racing through him.

x X XX xx X XX xxx x X XX xx X XX x X XX xx X XX xxx x X Xx X XX xx X XX xxx x X XX xx X XX x X XX xx X XX xxx x X Xx X XX xx X XX xxx x X XX xx X XX x X XX xx X XX xxx x X X

For the first two days, Chuck slept a lot, always with Herc, either clinging to his shoulder or being carried on the Marshall's back. Herc didn't really walk around in public a lot. If he had to, Mako took over caring for the injured Shifter. She had a special pouch and Chuck didn't protest much. He usually grumbled softly when Herc had to hand him over to another sitter. Then he slept again.

He was a small koala, Raleigh mused after he had researched into the marsupials native to Australia. Chuck wasn't the size of an adult, but he wasn't a baby either. He was simply a bit smaller.

Not that a Shifted human could be compared to the animal counterpart. Not at all.

Bandages were changed and wounds checked regularly. Medical was careful with predictions whether or not he would need surgery again. Right now they were hoping for his Shifter side to help along the healing without having to put him through surgery, especially since he would have to be human for that.

Since Mako had responsibilities, too, some that would call her away suddenly, Raleigh stepped in voluntarily.

"I can help," Raleigh said quietly, shoulders squared, almost standing to attention.

It got him a hard, penetrating look from Herc. Of course, as the father, he would be more than suspicious and careful who he entrusted his child to. Chuck was defenseless, he needed protection, and Raleigh's relationship with Chuck hadn't really started out well.

"I wouldn't hurt him."

Herc's expression grew into a smile that even reached his tired eyes. "I know, Raleigh." He sighed. "And I wouldn't want him with Newton, even if Hermann keeps an eye on things."

Raleigh chuckled. Newt meant well, but he was a hyper little spaz of a scientist sometimes.

"Chuck might end up under Kaiju parts or inside a specimen jar," Herc muttered, then grinned a little. "No, not really. Newt's careful, but he's not too comfortable having him close. You can't really work a scalpel with twenty pounds of koala on your back."

Raleigh snorted, eyes dancing. "No."

"And Chuck hates to be left with a pillow and blanket in a doggy bed."

He nearly choked on suppressing his laughter.

"Remember that. Physical closeness helps him heal."

Oh. Wow.

And then he had a rather drugged koala in his arms. He shifted him to one shoulder and Chuck made a soft sound that had Raleigh tense. It was the grumble he had heard before, this time intermixed with something of a purr.

Could koalas purr?

Chuck snuffled adorably and he couldn't help the stupidly happy smile forming on his lips. Small paws grasped instinctively at his sweater. Chuck gave another whine-rumble-purr, then relaxed.

"He's still not fully back," Herc explained, watching him with eagle eyes as he adjusted his uniform.

PPDC conference call. He had to look sharp. He had shaved for, too. The Marshall looked the born and bred soldier he was, and someone Raleigh felt he had to salute to at every turn.

"That's normal," Herc went on. "Shifters don't react well to pain meds on such a large scale. He'll be like that until his metabolism can take care of the drugs. They are weaning him off it right now, but as long as the injuries are so painful, I won't have him suffer."

Raleigh stood stock still, barely knowing where to touch, in case he hurt the Shifter. Herc suddenly grinned mischievously.

"You can hold him like you would a child, Raleigh. He'll hate me for saying that," he added wryly. "Try not to put too much pressure on where the bandages are, but otherwise you'll do fine."

"Uh, okay."

So he did.

Raleigh was amazed how soft the fur felt. What wasn't burned, shaved off or clumped with antibacterial cream, that is. He settled in a chair, Chuck's weight almost nothing, and Herc gave a nod of approval.

"Should he get hungry, there's stuff over there." He made a general gesture to where a small fridge sat. "Whatever he wants. He's not picky."

A nod.

"He'll probably sleep the whole time. It's how Shifters usually cope with such extensive injuries. If he gets too heavy you can put him to bed."

Raleigh chuckled softly. That sounded like Chuck was a baby. Herc caught on to the reason and laughed a little.

"Yeah. He'll hate me."

_No, he won't_, Raleigh thought. _He loves you. He looks up to you. You're his father._

Even if the little bastard didn't show it like that for the public to understand. The Hansens had a very complicated relationship that no one easily understood.

"Anyway, he's easy to take care of, is what I'm saying," Herc shrugged into his uniform jacket. "Close contact and sleep."

"Sounds good. I can do that."

Herc left ten minutes later. He looked like he really didn't want to, but he had to fulfill his Marshall duties. Raleigh just hoped he could live up to the trust Hansen had just put in him.

After a moment of trying to decide he chose the couch chair and Chuck adjusted to the changed position in his sleep. He snuffled adorably, paws flexing into the sweater, and Raleigh allowed himself the luxury of playing his fingers over the soft-furred head, trailing along the big ears with their dense, white tufts of hair. He was fascinated by the brown shade across Chuck's back with its ginger touches, so much like the Shifter's true hair color.

A sigh escaped the ball of fluff.

Raleigh felt his lips curl into a soft, tender, loving smile.

"What you do to me, Chuck Hansen," he murmured.

The koala simply slept on.

x X XX xx X XX xxx x X XX xx X XX x X XX xx X XX xxx x X Xx X XX xx X XX xxx x X XX xx X XX x X XX xx X XX xxx x X Xx X XX xx X XX xxx x X XX xx X XX x X XX xx X XX xxx x X X

Herc was back five hours later.

Raleigh hadn't moved much, but he had found the TV remote and had dozed off while watching some sub-titled movie. Chuck's furry face was mashed against his neck, one of his big, fuzzy ears fanning over Raleigh's cheek, and his paws were firmly fisted into the pilot's sweater.

The Shifter was asleep.

So was Raleigh.

Herc stood in the doorway, feeling something inside him unknot at the sight. It looked… familiar. Right. Completely like it should be.

Chuck trusted Raleigh. Even while his mind was still mostly that of his more primal self, he trusted the other man.

It was a weight off his shoulders, a kind of relief he hadn't thought he could feel at the sight, and he wished for a camera.

_Good for you, kid_, he thought. _You got the right instincts. Hope you listen to them when you're back._

Raleigh's eyes opened and were suddenly on him. He gave the younger Ranger a nod.

"I'll…" He made movements to get up.

Chuck grumbled softly, holding on more tightly.

"Stay where you are. I'll get dinner."

Raleigh gave him a perplexed look, but he stayed. He had, probably unconsciously, started to pet Chuck and the koala still had his eyes closed.

Herc knew he was grinning like a loon as he made his way to the mess hall.

Tendo took one look, then broke out into a similar grin. "Raleigh?" he asked.

"They're getting along."

"Good for you, man. And Chuck. He needs this."

"Who? Raleigh or that hardhead of a son of mine?"

"Both, actually."

Herc could only agree. He ordered a variety of food, all boxed up, and nodded at his Chief J-Tech and LOCCENT officer. Tendo raised his soda in a salute.

Good for all of them, he mused. Very good.

x X XX xx X XX xxx x X XX xx X XX x X XX xx X XX xxx x X X

Chuck was reasonably awake and watched them eat with moderate interest from where he had settled on a thick nest of cushions and blankets. His head rested on his forelegs, alert gaze following Raleigh's movements. Then he glanced at Herc, wrinkling his nose a little in a quizzical way.

The Marshall suppressed a grin when he caught Raleigh's rather fond expression. He had to quickly take a big sip as Raleigh reached out and scratched the koala, who leaned into the contact with a noise of pleasure, paws clenching into the mound of blankets. Raleigh's smile only grew and the softness in his eyes was unmistakable.

Yep, the boy had it bad. Not just for a koala; it was Chuck. Herc would have to be blind not to notice the vibes between the two men.

Raleigh suddenly looked caught and quickly glanced at Herc, dropping his hand. The older pilot shrugged.

"Happens. Must be the fluff and all."

"Uh, yeah, kinda."

"He'll be his prickly self soon enough. Enjoy it while it lasts."

Now Raleigh's cheeks burned and he concentrated on his food. If a koala could scowl, Chuck came closest to it. He shuffled closer to the American and peered hard at the food, then at the man eating it. There was no mistaking the meaning of that intense expression.

"Go on. Nothing to it. I won't tell," Herc told him, smirking around a spring roll.

Raleigh reached out and ran two fingers over the soft fur on the koala's head, avoiding the bandages. Then he buried them in the thick ruff, scratching again.

Chuck made a noise of pleasure.

"You look like a pirate," the blond murmured.

Herc snorted.

Chuck closed his uncovered eye and just enjoyed the attention.

"He'll bite my hand off when he gets back to his old self, hm?"

"Probably." Herc didn't look even the slightest bit apologetic.

"He really does remember everything later?"

"Yeah. Freaky but true. Scared the shit out of me the first time."

Raleigh knew he should feel uncomfortable knowing this. He was petting a fellow Ranger, had cuddled with him, but he couldn't bring himself to care. It wasn't even the fact that the koala was a cute animal to begin with; it was simply that it was Chuck.

They finished the meal almost in silence, Chuck dozing off after a while, and Herc placed him into the bed of pillows. Raleigh cast a last, lingering look, then headed off to his own quarters.

He missed the fuzzball.

Shit.

x X XX xx X XX xxx x X XX xx X XX x X XX xx X XX xxx x X Xx X XX xx X XX xxx x X XX xx X XX x X XX xx X XX xxx x X Xx X XX xx X XX xxx x X XX xx X XX x X XX xx X XX xxx x X X

The bandages grew less over the next few days. More burned fur was shaved off as the healing continued. The eye that had been covered before was now freed and it looked good. No lasting damage. The fur over his eyebrow was regrowing quickly.

The burns were making progress, too. No skin grafts had been needed. He would have scars, but nothing to bad, and the fur would grow over the bald patches. The ointments applied by Herc and now Raleigh aided with that.

Raleigh was amazed that Chuck the koala ate exactly what Chuck the human would. He might have trouble with something like a burger, but he happily munched on fries, lettuce, small bits of hamburger meat, and no one stopped him.

"Just because he looks like a koala doesn't mean he eats koala food," Tendo told him, cutting a steak into bite-sized pieces that Chuck happily shoved into his mouth. "I thought you knew about Shifters."

Chuck looked ridiculously cute, fur sticking up all over the place, holding the hamburger pieces, chewing with relish. The koala-sized glares he shot Raleigh were almost amusing, too.

"I know of them, just not so much about their food habits," the pilot muttered.

Yancy's girlfriend – Cathy or Katie or Karin-something – hadn't really run around as her alter ego. Yancy had known about her because it had been the first thing she had said to gauge his reaction. She had been a seal. Not something you would simply turn into while on dry land, Raleigh now mused. And about as useful as being a koala, unless you lived near water. Or fell off a ship. She had broken off their relationship when Yancy and Raleigh had gone to the Jaeger Academy.

They had never heard from her again.

"Well, Shifter 101: they are still themselves, and like I told you before, they understand every word you say while in animal form. Just like they remember everything from their time as an animal. Their digestive system is that of a human being, too."

Chuck seemed to grunt in agreement, though he still hadn't really come back. There seemed to be short spans when he looked almost like Chuck Hansen, behaved like the little smart-ass he was, but then he just curled up and dropped off to sleep in Raleigh's arms.

That, he knew, was not Chuck Hansen behavior.

Even if Raleigh would want it to be.

Part of him wanted to curl up with Chuck, feel his skin, the solid, hard-muscled form.

He caught those thoughts and grimaced. Aw, hell! He was really becoming too involved in this; more than was healthy.

No, this wasn't Chuck right now. The koala was still very much animal and not so much Chuck, or Raleigh would have gotten bitten a few times for sure already. The Australian wouldn't tolerate him petting his fur if he was really fully there.

"So you feed him pieces of hamburger and fries?" he asked.

"If he wants them. He hates eucalyptus. Herc says he threw up after trying some the first time."

There was another grumble from the Shifter and he held a large piece of hamburger patty in his furry paws, chewing with relish. The button eyes were on Raleigh as if daring him to say something.

Raleigh just smiled, then held out a fry.

Chuck regarded it, then slowly reached out and took it to shove it into his mouth.

Damn, he was in love.

With a fuzzy, fur faced Chuck Hansen.

This didn't bode well.

x X XX xx X XX xxx x X XX xx X XX x X XX xx X XX xxx x X Xx X XX xx X XX xxx x X XX xx X XX x X XX xx X XX xxx x X Xx X XX xx X XX xxx x X XX xx X XX x X XX xx X XX xx

The first time Chuck seemed to be consciously aware of where he was, who he was, what he was doing, was a week after his rescue. Herc had frequently and diligently changed the bandages, showing Raleigh what to look out for, how to treat the burns and the surgical scars. Raleigh had to swallow at the sight. There was a lot of burned skin. There were so many lacerations and deep tissue wounds. He knew how close Chuck had come to dying, how badly his body had suffered, but he also knew that Shifters were a lot more resilient than a mere human without that genetic mutation to their genes.

"His mother's side," Herc said one day as he cleaned the clumped fur gently. "Angela wasn't a Shifter herself. Neither her parents, but there had been some in her lineage. Not that it's a guarantee you get the gene."

Yeah, that was one mystery of life. Anyone could have a Shifter in their family and that might be the one and only ever. Scientists had unsuccessfully tried to decode the mystery so far. The genetic defect or mutation followed no discernible path.

"My family never had one, as far as I know," Herc went on, stroking his son's fur, scratching behind one big, furry ear. "Chuck was... a surprise. Late bloomer, too. His mother never knew. She died before his first Shift."

Raleigh swallowed, looking at where the koala's left paw was curled around his fingers, flexing a little.

"You can imagine my surprise when it happened," Herc laughed softly. "And a koala to boot."

That was another mystery. No one could say what a Shifter would turn into. It wasn't coupled to his place of birth, his upbringing, his talents. It served no higher purpose, it seemed. Yes, Chuck was Australian, so a koala was good, but the marsupials weren't ferocious warriors. They were… simply cute and cuddly and slow.

Not something Raleigh would associate with Chuck.

He felt something flitter through him. He bit his lower lip and tried to move his fingers out of the paw's grasp, but Chuck held on. He looked almost grumpy that Raleigh would attempt such a maneuver.

Herc finished his ministrations and taped the bandage again. "He's healing well."

"Yeah."

x X XX xx X XX xxx x X XX xx X XX x X XX xx X XX xxx x X X

Just how well his healing progressed showed when Chuck, curled up on Raleigh's stomach as Raleigh read a book in his quarters, suddenly made a noise of surprise and alarm. Becket dropped the book and found himself face to face with a fuzzy, gray-brown – and damn, those ginger highlights were too damn nice - Shifter who was staring at him so hard, it wasn't funny anymore.

Still, his lips curled in recognition.

Chuck was back.

Completely.

And Raleigh couldn't help stroke a finger over the furry cheek. "Hey."

Chuck's outrage was almost comical in that shape. His ears rotated back, his eyes narrowed, and he made warning noises that didn't really fit his small, cuddly appearance. Lips pulled back from his teeth, like a snarl.

On a dog it would have looked ferocious.

This was a koala. Ferocious wasn't a word that came to mind.

"Your dad knows you're here. And I know about you." Raleigh gave him a calm smile. "No need to rip my face off, okay?"

Chuck huffed, looking around, probably searching for a way to get off Raleigh and away.

"Listen, Chuck…"

If koalas could tear off faces and rip out limbs, Chuck probably came close to that ability. At least his expression said so. It was amazing how such an innocent, fuzzy face could look so furious and annoyed in one, coupled with indignation and the horror of realization that Raleigh Becket knew about him.

That he had come back to his senses lying on Raleigh's stomach.

That he had been relaxed and at ease.

That Raleigh was utterly okay with it all.

"It's been a week. And you've been with me or Herc for the whole time," the American explained, still not moving.

Chuck made a surprised noise.

"If you let me get up without biting, I can call your dad, okay?"

The Shifter tilted his head a little, almost as if he was contemplating the offer, then he did something Raleigh hadn't thought possible, had never contemplated happening: he curled up against, claws burying in Raleigh's shirt, and closed his eyes.

"Uh… I thought…"

Chuck opened his eyes and stared at him; hard. Then he grumble-huffed.

"I should call Herc…"

Another huff-grumble-sigh and the koala shuffled up his stomach to rest most of himself against Raleigh's chest.

"Okay…"

The koala buried his face against Raleigh's neck, making pleased little noises.

_Oh fuck_, Raleigh thought faintly.

Chuck was himself again and he still behaved like this, still sought closeness.

_Fuck, fuck, fuck!_

There was a pleased little purr coming from the gray animal and Raleigh's hands automatically rested on the warm body, then his fingers started to scratch him almost without thought.

_I'm so totally screwed_, he thought faintly. _And so hopelessly lost._

x X XX xx X XX xxx x X XX xx X XX x X XX xx X XX xxx x X Xx X XX xx X XX xxx x X XX xx X XX x X XX xx X XX xxx x X Xx X XX xx X XX xxx x X XX xx X XX x X XX xx X XX xxx x X X

"He trusts you," Herc said when he came by that evening and Chuck happily climbed onto his shoulder with soft noises that had the older Hansen smile tenderly. "Hey, kid."

Chuck seemed to purr or whatever the noise was, and Herc smiled more.

Raleigh swallowed at the tenderness, the familiarity.

"Instinct," Herc added, looking at him again. "In this shape, he operates a lot on instinct, even if he is human underneath."

He reached up and ran his fingers through the gray-brown fur. There were still too many scorched looking areas, but Chuck was healing. The doctors were very satisfied with his progress and the surgical incisions were already scarring. With their heightened metabolism and increased healing factor, Shifters could not only take a lot more damage and come back whole, they managed to heal such grave injuries in a fraction of the time it took a normal human being.

Raleigh had to smile at the picture before him, father and son, Herc's smile so warm and happy and almost too private for him to be a witness of.

"And he likes you. But you know that, don't you?"

He blinked, caught out of the left field, and opened his mouth to protest. Herc's raised eyebrows let him snap his mouth shut and evade the sharp gaze.

"Raleigh."

"I…"

"He does. He might be a smart-mouthed little asshole, and I'm saying that as his father, but he's a good boy. And he wears his heart on his sleeve."

Raleigh was stunned by the open words. Of course Chuck was easy to read. Anger was the emotion most prominently displayed. He was quick to rouse to a verbal confrontation and their physical altercation was the stuff of hallway gossip. Chuck managed to fly off the handle around Raleigh with a regularity that bordered on surreal.

"You know it was never personal, right?"

"He didn't want a liability as his back-up," Raleigh answered with a nod. "He was right."

"He just has a way that rubs you wrong," Herc smiled, continuing to caress the Shifter sleeping peacefully on his shoulder. "His coping method. I never taught him differently."

"You had the Drift," the other Jaeger pilot murmured, understanding. "It was how he communicated with you."

"It's how we know each other, Raleigh. Six years are a very long time for a pilot pair to Drift together. There is nothing I don't know about my son. So if I tell you that he likes you a lot, I mean it."

He bit his lower lip.

Herc's brows rose and his lips curled into an amused smile. "I see. The two of you should talk when he's fully back to himself. He might be easier to talk to like this," he smiled more as Chuck grumbled, "but it's not a fair fight."

It never was. Raleigh hadn't been prepared for the force of nature that was Chuck Hansen. The man who got under is skin, who had riled him up within minutes, who had tested his limits. Chuck had gone right for the kill and still Raleigh had somehow found himself drawn to him.

Now even more than ever.

"We will," he promised.

"Until then…"

Raleigh raised his hands, as if to show he was unarmed and not dangerous.

"Good." Herc gave the little marsupial a scratch. "He trusts you. Always remember that."

Raleigh nodded. He would.

x X XX xx X XX xxx x X XX xx X XX x X XX xx X XX xxx x X Xx X XX xx X XX xxx x X XX xx X XX x X XX xx X XX xxx x X Xx X XX xx X XX xxx x X XX xx X XX x X XX xx X XX xxx x X X

The first time Chuck was his human self again happened ten days after his miraculous survival.

And it happened in the middle of the night as Raleigh slept in his bed, the Shifter next to him since Herc had flown to Sydney on Marshall business.

Raleigh woke to a dip of something heavier than 20 pounds of koala shift around on the mattress. He was suddenly wide awake and instinctively switched on the lights.

It got him a grumble and a curse. A very verbal curse. Not to be confused with a marsupial snarl.

Raleigh stared at the naked man in bed with him, taking in the reddened skin from where it hadn't healed the burns completely, the scars, the healing lacerations and cuts.

Green eyes opened and Chuck cursed colorfully, then almost fell off the bed.

"Welcome back," Raleigh said, breathless and happy and so relieved.

"Fuck you!" Chuck answered, groping for a sheet to cover himself.

Raleigh knew his smile was bordering on stupidly happy, but he couldn't stop himself.

The Shifter just glared more, then huffed and leaned against the wall, snarling defensively.

"Stop staring at me, Becket!"

"How do you feel?"

"Naked!" he snapped.

God, he wanted to grab the other man and kiss him. He wanted to run his fingers through the tousled hair, wanted to feel the warm skin, without fur, and never let go. The desire shooting through him had Raleigh shift self-consciously and clear his throat. Unlike Chuck, he was wearing boxers and a t-shirt. Still, those didn't hide his reaction to the other man if Chuck continued to tug more of the blanket off of him.

"It's four in the morning," he said, flailing for something to take the tension out of the air around them.

Chuck stared at him as if he had lost his marbles. Maybe he had.

"You can stay here, I mean. Herc's still in Sydney…"

"I know where my dad is! I'm not some stupid animal!"

"I know that, Chuck. Really."

He snarled again, clearly spoiling for a fight, his only defense ever against whatever had been thrown at him. Right now he looked furious for being trapped in Raleigh's bed, back against the wall, naked.

Becket slowly slid off the mattress, stepping back to make way. "But you can leave," he said softly. "If you want. I'll get you some sweats and you can go to your own quarters."

Chuck stared at him, hard. And then he deflated, one hand coming up to rub his forehead.

"Chuck?"

"Get back in bed, Becket," he muttered.

Raleigh blinked. "You sure?"

"Bloody hell, yes! I'm too tired to argue and I want to sleep. Get back here!"

"If this makes you uncomfortable…"

Chuck's eyes drilled into him. "Are you being dense on purpose?! I'm not going anywhere. I'm here."

_To stay_, Raleigh's brain supplied. _Fu-uck!_

He went back into his bed and Chuck's glare went up a notch. When he settled back, the other man snorted and did the same. The bed was wide enough for them both, but not without some sense of contact between them.

Raleigh fought against the sensation of rightness and desire as naked skin touched him.

Chuck was back. He was human, no longer a fuzzy, adorable little marsupial.

"You think too much," the Shifter in question grumbled and moved until he was comfortable, which was very, very close to the American pilot. "And loudly."

"Sorry," he managed.

It got him an elbow to the ribs.

Raleigh knew he was truly and utterly fucked.

x X XX xx X XX xxx x X XX xx X XX x X XX xx X XX xxx x X Xx X XX xx X XX xxx x X XX xx X XX x X XX xx X XX xxx x X Xx X XX xx X XX xxx x X XX xx X XX x X XX xx X XX xxx x X X

Raleigh shouldn't have been surprised to wake up with a very human Chuck curled up around him like an oversized koala.

Still, it kind of surprised him.

Then again… not? He had really no idea how to feel at the moment.

Aside from warm and relaxed and at ease. Having Chuck, in his human form, with him was… nice. Something he could get used to.

It felt natural to slide his fingers into the tousled ginger hair. It felt even more natural to press his lips against the smooth forehead. And he had to smile at the sleepy murmur of content he got. Chuck's fingers slid over his ribcage, his arm curling more tightly around Raleigh.

It felt like the koala… just… well, yeah, bigger, of course. And more meaningful.

If Chuck was aware of what he was doing. If Chuck's brain was aware that he wasn't a koala any longer.

Green eyes opened, meeting blue ones.

"Hey," Becket said softly, taking a chance. "Good morning."

Chuck regarded him silently, sharply, with just a hint of wariness, then slowly disentangled himself. He sat up, his expression giving little away, just the eyes…

And the eyes told Raleigh too much.

His heart sank, his stomach clenched and something inside him twisted.

"Becket."

Twisted sharply.

Not Raleigh. Just Becket.

That… hurt. That even voice, barely an inflection. And it must have shown on Raleigh's face because Chuck looked suddenly confused, then embarrassed, then his shutters came down.

Raleigh knew he had made a mistake. He knew it was over. And he knew he suddenly missed the Shifter as he had been before: affectionate, warm, cuddly.

He slipped off the bed, giving Chuck and himself room, then almost fled into the bathroom.

Part of him wished he still had the koala in bed with him because that had been easier. So much easier and still so hard, because his feelings were all over the place.

"Damn," he whispered, leaning against the closed door, head banging against the metal. "Damn it all to hell!"

x X XX xx X XX xxx x X XX xx X XX x X XX xx X XX xxx x X X

Chuck sat in the so familiar bed, eyes on the closed bathroom door, a frown on his features. Part of his brain was still busy rebooting from the moment he had stalled, waking up in Raleigh's embrace, feeling the fingers running through his hair, the lips brushing over his forehead.

It had been… nice.

More than he had expected, now that he was human again.

He had been very much aware of what, who and where he was on and off for a few days. His instinctual way of protecting his mind from trauma had been to Shift. And to heal his injuries. To survive. Normally when that happened, Herc took care of him. The few times it had in the past, his father had been there.

No judgment.

Acceptance, support and love.

It had always been like this.

Chuck loved his dad even more for that, because he had been a very late bloomer and he had been the last to expect himself to be a Shifter. Let alone Shift into such a strange form.

Now he had woken to Raleigh as his sitter. That Herc had trusted Raleigh with this spoke volumes. That Chuck had felt the same trust instinctually was a good, strong hint, too.

He had found that the emotions he had shoved away ever since their first encounter, just days before Operation Pitfall, were coming back. He wasn't used to them. They had been mostly unfamiliar and confusing, but in the past few days things had been clearer.

His emotions had been clearer.

He was falling, had already fallen, for the American.

Who now knew that Chuck Hansen was a Shifter in form of a koala. Who had baby-sat him. Who had been _allowed_ to do that by Herc, the most protective of fathers. Who had – and Chuck nearly blushed at the memory – stroked and petted him while the koala had clung to the sweater.

That had been instinct on his part, too. To hold on to the one protecting him.

Because of the instinctual trust.

Now he was human and Raleigh hadn't stopped the caresses. He had been very much awake and aware of who he was touching so intimately, who was curled up against him. Not a furry little marsupial but a fully grown, very male human being.

"Bloody hell," he murmured.

Chuck stared at the closed bathroom door. He had fought what was leading him closer and closer to Raleigh for so long, and it had weakened his defenses.

Why was he fighting anyway?

He had no idea. He didn't give a flying whoopee about what anyone thought about him if he slept with Raleigh, if they grew into something more than fuckbuddies. To be truthful, Chuck didn't want them to be just that.

He also didn't think that Raleigh was a prude or averse to this kind of relationship. Heck, the man had woken him with a kiss to the forehead!

It was almost inevitable. It had been there for so long and Chuck had always pushed it away.

Raleigh was getting to him.

The bathroom door suddenly opened and Raleigh stepped outside, stopping when he found Chuck's intense gaze on him. He almost froze in mid-step, eyes widening a little, all blue-eyed indecision and apprehension.

_He thought I'd leave. He gave me an opening_, Chuck thought. _Damn it all to hell, Becket! I'm not!_

Tension crept through Raleigh's body and he seemed to hold his breath, waiting for whatever. Yelling, screaming, a fist to the face.

_Fuck this! Since when do I have to be the grown-up? _

And they called him socially inept. Raleigh wasn't much better.

Chuck got up from the bed in one lithe move, aware he was utterly naked and not caring a single bit. Raleigh gave him this confused look, but he didn't move away when the other man approached, though there was a moment of uncertainty.

"Chuck?"

"I figured it out."

The sudden calmness in the blue eyes made him shiver. Like a switch had been flipped and Raleigh knew. He simply _knew_. It was something Chuck had noticed right at the time he had first laid eyes on the man. The calm Becket could fall back upon. Like there was this core of utter balance inside him as if he had found an answer to whatever had driven him away from the PPDC while building the Wall.

Maybe he had.

Maybe it would have been the same for Chuck, if he lost his dad like this, if he felt his death over and over, if the Ghosts remained.

Maybe five yeas had been enough.

That's how they had met, Raleigh this neutral, too damn calm center. Chuck had been the opposite, running his mouth off, wanting a reaction, wanting to… what? Send Raleigh back?

He almost laughed.

So yeah, Raleigh looking so calm again was progress.

"Oh. And?" he asked.

"And you know. Right?" Chuck taunted.

He advanced on the other man. Old emotions whispered through him, roused by Raleigh's flight from the bed. Anger. Rage. So familiar. So easy to fall back upon. And there was more. Need. Soft waves of something else, something a lot more gentle and wanting.

"I guess…"

Chuck pushed him back against the wall, leaning closer. "You know!"

"I knew I felt something for you, still have it. I wasn't sure and I couldn't… well, ask. At least you couldn't answer."

"Since when?" he demanded.

Raleigh shrugged. "A little while after I got here. It was physical at first."

He snorted. "You hit me."

He got a smile. "You provoked the shit out of me. You insulted Mako. You despised having me as your back-up. You were an arrogant s.o.b. And I wanted to do more than hit you, Hansen."

"Fuck…" Chuck stared at him. "You're a bloody moron, Raleigh Becket!"

And then he kissed him

x X XX xx X XX xxx x X XX xx X XX x X XX xx X XX xxx x X X

Raleigh was caught off guard by the move, despite the fact that a very naked Chuck had still been in his bed when he had come out of the bathroom. And then approached him like he was stalking prey. Slightly chapped lips slid over his, a tongue poking against Raleigh's lips, the kiss finishing with a soft nip.

"Uh…" Raleigh's brain stalled.

Chuck's slow smile was almost teasing. "Cat got your tongue?"

Raleigh ran his palms over the warm skin, feeling the bumps of scars against his finger tips.

"Koala," he answered, finally getting with the program.

Chuck snorted, kissing him again. And this time, Raleigh acted, opening up, meeting the questing tongue, drawing Chuck closer. The younger man shuddered and moaned softly. There was a definite hint of rising interest further south.

Raleigh broke the kiss.

"Fuck!" Chuck hissed, burying his head against Raleigh's shoulder.

"Not just yet," the American answered.

It got him another groan.

"Chuck?"

The ginger head rose, the green eyes watching him suspiciously.

"You should get checked out first."

"I'm fine, Rah-leigh!" he snarled.

"I know you are. I know Shifters are great healers. I just want to make sure…"

"Fuck you!"

"Chuck…I like you. A lot. That won't change within an hour where we get Medical's okay. And I want you. Badly."

The Australian groaned and screwed his eyes shut. "Stop saying that, you bloody do-gooder!"

He kissed him, deep, longing, putting everything into the kiss, and Chuck shivered, fingers digging into Raleigh's shirt.

"We have time, Chuck. All the time we need. And Herc would kill me."

It got him a snort.

Raleigh nuzzled one temple. "He would. I promised not to hurt you."

"You aren't. I'm not in pain."

"Exam first."

"Ray…"

He silenced him with a kiss. "It's Raleigh," he murmured when they separated. "And we're following the Marshall's orders."

Chuck grumbled some more.

"Who happens to be your dad."

He glared.

"Who will skin me alive if I make anything worse."

Chuck relented, though grudgingly.

Even though he didn't go easily and only after such a heavy make-out session that Raleigh was close to calling off the intended visit to Medical.

Damn the Australian son of a bitch!

x X XX xx X XX xxx x X XX xx X XX x X XX xx X XX xxx x X Xx X XX xx X XX xxx x X XX xx X XX x X XX xx X XX xxx x X Xx X XX xx X XX xxx x X XX xx X XX x X XX xx X XX xxx x X X

Chuck got the all clear, of course. The Shift hadn't opened any wounds and he was healing as quickly as expected.

Herc was there, looking relieved and close to hugging his son. The way they looked at each other, a lot was being said without words.

As it had always been. Whoever thought the two men were at odds outside the Conn-Pod had never looked any closer than the surface. There was so much more and not just when Chuck was a drugged little koala, recovering from near-fatal injuries.

Raleigh smiled to himself, keeping back, only meeting Herc's gaze when Chuck was getting blood drawn.

"You did good," Hansen said softly, relief visible in every line of his body.

Raleigh gave him a raised eyebrow.

"Trust has a lot to do with coming back after such trauma. With him coming back to be human. He wouldn't have Shifted with you so close if he didn't feel safe."

And Chuck had only ever trusted his father. Now there was Raleigh.

He fought back the rising heat in his face, shifting nervously. This morning had been more than trust. It had been more than lust, too. Raleigh wanted this; he wanted Chuck. As more than just a fling, a one-night stand.

Herc's smile was almost devious. "Good for you," he rumbled, then walked over to where Chuck was getting ready to leave.

Raleigh's wide eyes followed him. Shit…

x X XX xx X XX xxx x X XX xx X XX x X XX xx X XX xxx x X Xx X XX xx X XX xxx x X XX xx X XX x X XX xx X XX xxx x X Xx X XX xx X XX xxx x X XX xx X XX x X XX xx X XX xxx x X X

When Raleigh returned from his extended Kwoon session with Mako, feeling pleasantly exhausted and only slightly bruised, he was surprised to find his quarters had been invaded by… a koala.

Raleigh stopped in the middle of the doorway, staring at the sight before him.

A koala.

With a few bald patches of healing skin between brownish-gray fur. With those beloved ginger highlights.

Sitting on his bed and staring at him.

Hard.

Very, very hard.

"Uh…"

There was a grumble and it… he, Chuck!... moved his paw in an almost commanding gesture.

Close the door, moron. Yeah, that wasn't hard to translate.

"Why are you…?" Raleigh made a helpless gesture.

Had something happened? Had Chuck had some kind of new trauma? PTSD?

"Are you okay? You want me to call Herc?"

And how had he made it here as a koala? Had someone brought him here? Maybe the Marshall?

The koala huffed and sat back, shaking his head. Then, in a kind of blurry move, he was human.

Naked.

Human.

Very naked.

Raleigh drew a breath, trying not to react, but it was difficult. It wasn't so much the Shift, more the result.

There was hardly any reddened skin left. Shifters were truly fast healers, though they couldn't prevent scarring. And there were long, red scars. They would stay.

No, this wasn't about the Shift itself; it was about seeing Chuck again in all his glory. A very primal part of Raleigh was really getting with the program and took one hell of an interest.

"Took you long enough."

"I… was in the Kwoon," he managed.

"I figured. Dealing with it all, hm?"

"Kinda."

Raleigh nervously shifted from one foot to the other. A naked Chuck Hansen was rather distracting. Especially the way he was looking at him, a mixture of exasperated, annoyed, arrogant and strangely... hungry.

"You weren't as tongue-tied when I was a fuzz-face. I remember you talking to me, touching me, holding me." He raised one provocative eyebrow. "And I was naked back then, too."

Raleigh felt a hot flash race through him.

Chuck's grin became almost insolent. And hot. Fuck, he looked hot. Scars and all.

"I think we left off somewhere. Somewhere I wasn't really satisfied with," he purred, leaning back, showing off lean lines of muscle.

And more.

Shit.

"And I'd really like to continue it."

Raleigh closed the distance between them like drawn on a string, standing in front of the bed, mouth dry. His eyes drifted to the very visible evidence of Chuck's desire and he nervously licked his lips. He wasn't a virgin, but the past five years had been more or less a dry spell. Like a kind of penance, a black hole, something he hadn't really wanted to crawl out of – or pull anyone else inside, either.

Chuck's eyes were intense, meeting Raleigh's brilliant blue ones. "Doc says I'm okay."

"I heard."

"And it's not like I'm about to mate you for life."

Raleigh stared, eyes wide, then wheezed. "What?!"

Chuck laughed, open and free and looking more his age of twenty-two than he ever had.

"Don't tell me you haven't heard that bullshit? Shifters have an animal side and they mate for life? Find the perfect bond mate and all that crap? Not happening."

"I never thought…"

"Hm, you never do. Must be your default setting, Rah-leigh," he drawled.

And then Chuck scooted closer, climbing to his knees in a smooth move, and fisted his fingers into Raleigh's sweater like he had done as a koala.

There was a second where he simply looked at the blond, like waiting for a denial, then he pulled him close.

The kiss was slow at first, deepening after a first probing contact, then became almost hungry. Raleigh knew he was lost; had always known it. He carded his fingers into the ginger hair, groaning into the decidedly more and more intense kiss, and when Chuck let himself sink back, he followed.

XX xx

"Why were you sitting on my bed as a koala?" Raleigh asked as they lay together in the afterglow of some really good sex.

"I'm a Shifter," Chuck answered, the 'duh' audible, though not added out loud.

"Who doesn't normally Shift for fun."

Chuck snorted. "It's not a convenient shape."

"So why?"

He kissed Raleigh's neck, mouthing a little at the warm skin. They were spooned together, Chuck behind the blond.

"My dad told you I only Shifted because I was badly injured. I…" He sighed, disturbing the fine hair on Raleigh's neck. "I didn't want you to think I'm… just that. I know you saw me as a koala for a while. I was at my worst. I just wanted you to see me… without that."

Raleigh turned and kissed him, soft and loving. "I didn't think that. When I saw you just now, I was actually terrified that something had happened again, that a switch had been thrown and you were a koala again:"

"I don't just trigger," Chuck muttered, sounding a little pissed. "At least not without nearly dying first. Severe physical trauma like that triggers."

"I know that now."

"Good. And I don't make a habit out of Shifting."

"Good." Raleigh grinned. "though I liked you all fuzzy and button-eyed."

Chuck rolled his eyes.

Raleigh pulled him close again, lips meeting, and Chuck muttered something about 'bloody yanks and their fucked up ideas'.

x X XX xx X XX xxx x X XX xx X XX x X XX xx X XX xxx x X Xx X XX xx X XX xxx x X XX xx X XX x X XX xx X XX xxx x X Xx X XX xx X XX xxx x X XX xx X XX x X XX xx X XX xxx x X X

Herc's raised brows had Raleigh feel the heat rise in his face when he ran into him in the mess hall the next morning.

"Sleep well?" the Marshall teased, eyes on the very visible bite mark on Raleigh's neck.

He just about caught himself from touching the mark. Chuck was a very passionate man and Raleigh hadn't been opposed to it. Last night had been decidedly hot.

So he just mumbled something that sounded possibly like an affirmative.

Herc handed him a mug of coffee, the smug smile still there. "He's a handful."

Raleigh buried his face in the mug. Herc laughed, then headed off to wherever he was apparently needed.

Mako slid into the seat across from Raleigh, looking almost expectant. He studied his coffee, which was almost empty, then sighed.

"Yeah, okay, it happened," he muttered.

She broke out into a happy smile. "Which we can see, of course. I would congratulate you, but that might not be the correct term." She tilted her head a little. "You are good for each other, Raleigh. And you like each other."

"We beat each other up."

"Over a girl," she teased.

"He insulted you!"

"I have known Chuck Hansen a lot longer than you. It wasn't an insult. It was anger at being downgraded by the Marshall. He called you back, he actively searched for you, Raleigh Becket, to assist in Operation Pitfall. In Chuck's eyes it was an insult to him. It was doubt in his abilities, in their abilities, Herc and him, to win this fight. It was never personal."

He grunted. Of course he knew that. Back then he hadn't realized it, but now he had come to understand. Raleigh had never felt the hero; he wouldn't have climbed down from the Wall if Pentecost's pitch hadn't somehow struck a nerve. He had come back to participate in a suicide mission. There had been nothing left for him to lose – or to win.

Chuck… Chuck had reacted to him out of a deep pit of hurt pride, anger, resentment and disgust.

Raleigh had reacted without thinking, defending Mako's honor, as he had thought, and it had made matters worse.

Until now.

When there was no Kaiju threat, no fight to win, no pretense and bluster. There was only them and that simmering fire between them, that low curl deep in his gut that had been there since day one.

Mako regarded him curiously. "It didn't stop you from developing feelings for him," she said, with that still knowing smile on her lips.

"He was a cute, fuzzy bear," he defended himself.

Mako burst out laughing. "Oh Raleigh…"

He ducked his head. He had been interested long before that. He had found the other man attractive and it hadn't been because he hadn't gotten any for a while.

"A marsupial, not a bear."

Raleigh's head shot up and he opened his mouth, then snapped it shut again. Chuck grinned widely as he sat down next to him, a tray with a sandwich and a large bottle of water in front of him. He had thrown on his usual outfit, which entailed a tightly fitted t-shirt, and there was no shame or embarrassment in his behavior about showing off what scars peeked out underneath.

Raleigh knew them intimately. From the time he had treated them when the Shifter had been his koala self, and from last night, when he had traced them tenderly.

Chuck leaned in, eyes alight with mischief and something that hit Raleigh like a two-by-four. "And you think I'm cute."

Shit, this wasn't good, the blond thought faintly.

Mako smiled. "And fuzzy. Which you are. Cute and fuzzy."

Chuck shot her an evil look, which she returned with an angelic one of her own. "I'm not fuzzy!" he hissed.

Raleigh opened his mouth, then shut it again. _Nope, not going there_, he thought.

Chuck's narrowed eyes were warning enough. He demolished his sandwich.

"We have training," Mako reminded Raleigh, who had been hyperaware of the man next to him.

"Right. I…" He shot Chuck a look. "Later?"

It got him a cheeky grin. "Yeah."

Mako didn't stop smiling and Raleigh hated her for it.

The Kwoon training took his mind off matters as he and Mako worked on their synchronicity and balance. He pushed Chuck into a compartment and locked the door; he was good at that. He concentrated on what was on hand: the Kwoon session.

Mako gave him an approving nod.

x X XX xx X XX xxx x X XX xx X XX x X XX xx X XX xxx x X Xx X XX xx X XX xxx x X XX xx X XX x X XX xx X XX xxx x X Xx X XX xx X XX xxx x X XX xx X XX x X XX xx X XX xxx x X X

Raleigh was the first to wake and he smiled as he looked at the man in bed with him. Chuck lay on his stomach, arms curled around his pillow, like he had done when he had been his koala self.

It was adorable.

And it was a thought that would one day probably get him killed by the very man he was looking at now.

Damn, he was in love.

The t-shirt had ridden up over night, showing a broad, muscular back, pale skin interrupted by the scars. Raleigh couldn't take his eyes off them. They all had scars, of course, but these would have turned out worse if Chuck wasn't a Shifter.

He could have died.

Raleigh bit back on the anger and helplessness he felt each time.

Chuck moved a little and Raleigh watched the shirt slip over the scars. Hidden from sight once more, but never out of his mind. He leaned over him, kissing the nape of his neck, warm and smooth and alive.

"Ray…"

It was a sleepy, relaxed mumble.

Raleigh kept nuzzling the other's neck. A light bite had Chuck hum. Raleigh bit a little harder. The Shifter turned onto his back, eyes filled with warmth.

"Didn't get enough last night?"

"I can never get enough of you."

"You're such a sappy bastard."

The bright eyes regarded him with trust and need and love.

Complete trust.

Chuck slipped off the t-shirt, all hard muscle and warm skin, and Raleigh teethed a special place, the skin reddening but not breaking.

"Raleigh…" There was a light hitch in Chuck's voice due to the fact that Raleigh's hand was in a strategic position.

Chuck was interested. Very interested.

Raleigh removed the flimsy obstacle the shorts represented and wrapped his hand around Chuck's dick, stroking leisurely, grinning more when his lover arched into the friction. Green eyes widened, the lips glistened wetly where he had run his tongue over them and those sounds… Raleigh would have to be made of stone not to react to the needy little noises, how the lithe muscles moved to his touch.

He claimed Chuck's mouth, diving into the kiss, wanting more and needing more. He slid his own hard length against Chuck's, trying to keep them close together. The Shifter jerked a little, stuttering a breath, whispering his name.

Sliding down the other man, Raleigh ran a teasing tongue over the straining hardness, delighting in the sounds he drew from Chuck.

"Turn," he murmured.

There was an unholy light in those eyes and Chuck grinned suggestively, then slowly, almost leisurely turned onto his stomach.

Raleigh drew a deep moan when he paid attention to the more than ready hole with his slicked-up fingers. He ran his eyes over the long stretch of skin before him, the muscular back.

The scars were bright against the pale skin.

Raleigh leaned down, kissing them, teasing, caressing, tracing each one. They would never disappear, only whiten with age.

Chuck had stilled, his breathing harder, very much aware of the significance, and he urged Raleigh on.

Raleigh slipped two fingers into him, spreading them. Chuck's hands clenched into fists and his ass lifted.

"In me," he managed. "Please!"

Raleigh was so close, he didn't really hear the words, only understood the need, and he pushed into the tightness of his lover. Chuck arched against him with a hiss. They had slept together last night and he had been prepared, but he was still tight.

"Fuck! Move!" Chuck breathed.

Raleigh pushed deeper, drawing an appreciative moan. His hips drove forward once more.

Pleasure sparked through him. Pleasure and almost rabid lust. The need to feel it. The hunger for Chuck.

He couldn't last long like that, the pace hard and fast and almost punishing. Too brief, too intense, the orgasm ripping through him and his mind sliding away as he felt Chuck's as well.

So gorgeous. So wonderful. All his. His lover, his alone. No one else. He wanted to protect this man, wanted to keep him safe and from harm, but Chuck wasn't weak.

He was strong and his own person, never to be cuddled or belittled.

Raleigh was insanely proud and terribly scared in one.

Chuck turned onto his back, looking breathless and sated. Raleigh looked at him in the stunned amazement he had come to associate with facing this man. He reached out and splayed his hand over the Shifter's stomach, feeling every heave as Chuck breathed.

"Love you," he whispered.

Chuck's eyes widened and he swallowed.

"I mean it. I wouldn't lie to you."

"I know," the Shifter murmured.

"Bond or not bond."

Chuck spluttered, eyes flaring. "We do not bond!" he snarled.

He pushed himself up on his elbows and looked at him. "I know," Raleigh replied with a tender smile.

It got him a frown, the narrowed eyes still sparking, but Chuck only huffed. Raleigh settled down again.

"But wouldn't that be fun?" he mumbled.

"No."

"No?"

"No."

"Even if it was me?"

"It's already you, Rah-leigh!"

He leaned over the younger man again, taking in the snarl only visible in his eyes.

The next kiss was slow and gentle, hands caressing naked skin, and Raleigh settled with his head on Chuck's chest, feeling so very much at ease. Chuck's fingers lazily slid through his hair, making it stick all over the place.

It was relaxing.

"Me, too," the Australian finally said, voice rough. "I… You know… Me, too."

Raleigh smiled, pressing his lips against what warm skin was in front of him, drawing a little laugh.

It was enough.

It was more than enough.

x X XX xx X XX xxx x X XX xx X XX x X XX xx X XX xxx x X Xx X XX xx X XX xxx x X XX xx X XX x X XX xx X XX xxx x X Xx X XX xx X XX xxx x X XX xx X XX x X XX xx X XX xxx x X X

Chuck looked up from where he was tinkering with a piece of Jaeger gear he was working on.

"I can hear you thinking," he told the other man watching him from over the book he definitely wasn't reading.

Hadn't been reading for the last half hour, if Chuck was any judge of it.

Raleigh looked slightly caught, then lowered the book.

"Why a koala?"

Chuck blinked. "What?"

"Why are you a koala?"

"Are you dense? I thought you knew a little more about Shifters than that we can turn into animals."

"I do."

"Then it's a stupid-ass question."

"I know you can't really choose, but mostly the animal form matches." Raleigh licked his lip. "Well, it matches the person and the personality traits."

Chuck scowled at him. "Don't you dare…"

"And you really are a softie on the inside. Cuddly and fuzzy and cute…"

Raleigh ducked the flying roll of tape.

"I'll ignore what you just said. My life didn't come with a handbook and a leaflet saying 'So now you're a koala'! You think I wouldn't want to be something else? Something more useful?"

Raleigh put down the book and rose in one fluid motion, smiling. "You have a very calming effect on those you hang on to, Chuck. I call that useful."

The Australian snorted derisively. "Right."

Raleigh caught him, kissing him softly. Chuck blinked, then scowled again.

"I'm not a cuddly, cute animal, Raleigh. Okay?"

"Okay."

"And I'm not a softie."

Raleigh smiled. "You are," he replied and kissed him again.

Temper rising, Chuck thumped his chest and growled. "Asshole."

"Underneath all that blustery, tough exterior you are sweet."

It got him another, harder blow.

"No handbook, hm? Not even a leaflet?"

"Go and read up on Shifters, Ray."

"I already did. Extensively. Not that it helps when the guy you're into is a koala. With an adorable, fuzzy face. And ginger highlights."

"Fuck off," Chuck snarled, but there was no heat in it. Actually, he was fighting back the heat threatening to rise in his face.

Raleigh grinned, unrepentant.

Chuck turned with a muttered curse and walked back to the gears he had been checking over. He was not sweet, nor was he soft and cuddly! A Shifter's animal was not the expression of his soul, or crap like that.

Raleigh didn't leave, just settled back in his chair, picked up his book, and continued reading. For real this time.

Chuck refused to be baited into turning around and watching him. He simply concentrated on his work, but he couldn't keep his smile from showing just a little bit.


End file.
